Bad Ideas
by wintergreen825
Summary: It was just one bad idea after another, but what can you do? It was the US government. They had a lot of them.
1. Legal Back Alley

**Legal Disclaimer:** I own my stuff, but not the original source material. That belongs to whoever. Also, the opinions and interpretations I use here may not reflect the same in said whoever that owns the source material. Look, I'm just a poor college librarian. Suing me isn't going to get you anything but tears.

**Warning:** This work may be offensive to some readers. Feel free to back out if that's you.

**Author's Note:** So, I have feelings about the Rogues, particularly how _Infinity War_ continued the MCU's trend of ignoring the betrayals of the brute force while punishing the intelligent characters for existing. Now I have a fic collection for storing those feelings. This will be updated from time to time, but with other angry Avengers oneshots that will probably not be connected. You have been warned.

**Submitting Info:**  
**Stacked with:** Hogwarts (Term 10); MC4A  
Individual Challenges: Click Bait It; Yellow Ribbon; Yellow Ribbon Redux; Metahuman MC (x3); Team Logic; Seeds; The 3rd Rule; Lovely Triangle; Advice from the Mug; New Fandom Smell (Y); Short Jog; Neurodivergent; Quiet Time  
**House:** Hufflepuff  
**Assignment No.:** Term 10 – Assignment 8  
**Other Hogwarts Challenges:** Auction [7.1] (Avengers AU); Pinata [Medium] (Friendship); Insane Prompt Challenge [879] (Friendship); Scavenger Hunt [76] (Write an AU from another fandom.); Gym (Marvel)  
**Word Count:** 1715

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**Legal Back Alleys**  
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"I'm here to strongarm you to that gala thingy," Jessica announced as she walked through the doors of the lab. Tony looked up from his work but didn't remove his hands from the depths of the suit. Jessica rolled her dark eyes. "Apparently, I'm the only other person in our little gang willing to put up with your shitty ass attitude who isn't also fucking you. And because I'm a good friend, I'm gonna warn you that Murdock was chatting up your CEO."

"Was Nelson or Page around? Preferably Nelson," Tony replied. He started untangling himself from the circuitry. "Nelson is the official Devil-wrangler, right? I know I'm rich and all, but I still would rather not replace furniture again. Pepper's control hasn't been the best the last few weeks. Stress."

"That's one fucking label to put on it," Jessica said drily. She rolled her shoulders in that half-shrug she does when she wants to punch something. It was her normal response whenever anything related to the Rogue Avengers was brought up. She gave him a look over. "You look like shit yourself. It's not too late to ship those fuckers back to Fuckville. Seriously, Stark, I really do think you have a strong case to have them assigned to whatever is going to be the American superhero version of Minot."

"You've been hanging out with my Rhodey, Jones." Tony started the process of securing the lab. It was a precaution that he used to not take, but the thought of the Rogues anywhere near his work made him twitchy. Friday was a good girl and he had given her all the tools she needed to protect herself and fulfill her duties, but a part of him would never forget how many times his former _team_ hadn't been stopped by closed doors and warnings. To distract himself, Tony decided to fill the void with words. "You should probably tell him that you have designs on his girlfriend, though, because it's not cool to pretend to be friends when you have ulterior motives."

"Fuck you, Stark," she snarled so venomously that he found himself freezing despite himself.

For a moment he was stuck on the thought that Jessica had a lot in common with any version of super-soldier out there. Then she snapped her fingers in front of his face before pointing directly at her eyes. The unspoken acknowledgement of the impending panic attack she was interrupting as quickly as almost triggering it was actually really nice. This was why she was his favorite.

"I get the need to push people away—I fucking mastered it myself—but compare me to those backstabbing traitors again and I'm gonna lock you in a room with that quack the female Ross brought along. I might do that anyway. Talking about your problems is supposed to be healthy or some shit."

"Did you just threaten me with therapy?"

"Yep," she confirmed with extra emphasis on the pop at the end. She crowded close to him and linked arms to _literally strongarm_ him from the lab. He waved a hand to indicate to Friday to lock the rest down. "And for the fucking record, while Carol is definitely the Cap I would love to tap, I'm currently off that particular market. Trish says thank you for that prototype. That's really why I agreed to come to your dungeon, Dr. Kinky Shit."

Tony barked out a laugh as the lab went dark behind them. Because Jessica was a good friend, she put up with Friday playing the Beach Boys' _Good Vibrations_ the entire way to the residential floor. Because he didn't want to get on Pepper's bad side, he had Friday cut the music before the elevator doors opened. Sure enough, Murdock was settled on the loveseat next to Pepper talking about different types of civil suits.

_That's not flirting_.

That was Pepper looking like she was planning a hostile takeover. To make Tony's sense of dread worse, Nelson was in an adjacent armchair, fully participating in the conversation, and Karen Page was perched on the couch on the other side of it with her ever present notebook in hand. This really wasn't flirting.

_Oh, no. Oh, not good. Not good at all._

They were _plotting._

"Pepper, enchilada of my soul—"

"Not for all the shoes in the world," she replied before continuing her discussion.

"Foggy, my favorite avocado—"

"She scares me more," Nelson interrupted before spitting out a string of words that might have been Latin, except it wasn't any Latin that Tony knew. As a last-ditch effort, he turned his gaze towards Karen. She rolled her eyes but passed off her notebook to Nelson before pushing him out of the room towards his bedroom.

"Friday knows what he's wearing," Pepper called out just as they left the living room. "Don't let him turn it into a debate."

"You've been assigned to be my babysitter now?" Tony teased as yet another of the women filling his life now manhandled him. "Because I can tell you that it never ends well, for anyone."

"You know what? Jessica and Betty have been plotting with Pepper to make you actually go see Dr. Samson," Karen said with the particular edge she normally only used forcing Murdock to stay in bed after a fight landed him in yet another dumpster. "If you keep talking like that, I'm going to just be more on their side than I already am."

"Why does everyone want me to see a therapist?" Tony whined. Karen shooed him into the closet. Friday helpfully rotated the chosen suit forward. Apparently, Pepper really wanted to make a statement as she had chosen an entirely black ensemble. The only spot of color seemed to be the elaborately folded pocket in Iron Man red.

"Because you're long overdue, Boss," Friday answered. "You're actually scheduled for three days from now, but Doc has agreed to keep his schedule as open as possible, in case of emergencies stemming from the Rogues' unpleasant return. Jonesy likes him."

"Well, if _Jones_ likes him," Tony grumbled as he put on his suit. He just needed cufflinks to finish off the look. "I don't need to be coddled, you know."

"It's not coddling to support a survivor who is being forced to confront and play nice with his abusers, Dr. Stark," Karen announced as she presented him with a pair of cufflinks from his jewelry box. It was the set he had made after Rhodey had dared him to see how small he could make the ARC reactor. The distinctive blue glow would also disrupt any long-range listening devices in his vicinity, a fact which annoyed the tattered remains of SHIELD. He exchanged a toothy grin with the blonde as he put on the cufflinks.

For all the agents he had personally had to save after the Info Dump, there were still a surprising amount who were still willing to trust Fury and Coulson to take care of them. Even then, the habit of abandoning operatives to their fates had sent more than one into the arms of the newly-created Strategic World Observation & Response Directorate. SWORD operated under the supervision of the UN Security Council, and as such followed the UN policy of accountability and transparency.

Whereas SHIELD had immediately returned to its shady ways of handling things, especially where metahumans were concerned, SWORD helped protect people on a global scale. They provided ways for metahumans wanting to help their communities to do so in a way that kept everyone as safe as possible. Being registered with SWORD had kept more than one person from being conscripted to work for SHIELD or be tagged like a criminal for the crime of being different.

Tony had been called in to decommission the Icebox when SWORD had been made aware of the prisoners being held there for experimentation. He shuddered at the memories. Thank Tesla that the Accords hadn't died in the wake of Rogers' little temper tantrum. Tony didn't even want to imagine what the world might be like without the Accords. Ross had tried to push something through Congress before he had been replaced by the incoming president's choice for Secretary of State. The Super Human Registration Act had been the stuff of nightmares, truly everything that Rogers had accused the Accords of being but on super serum. It had been shelved due to international outcry, and Thaddeus Ross had finally been forced to accept full retirement.

Not before arranging a final parting gift for Tony and the Avengers Initiative: the US probations of Rogers' little band of rogues and their return to US soil.

That was what tonight's gala was about: welcoming back the Rogues and showing the world that they could be re-integrated into the Initiative.

Tony personally had his doubts, because he had to still be their least favorite person. Those doubts were _nothing_ compared to the members who had joined the Initiative since it was taken over by SWORD. The avocados were clearly cooking something up with Pepper; Jessica wanted to punch the lot of the Rogues and rip Maximoff in particular into tiny pieces with her bare hands. Claire had been tweeting Luke creative uses for the objects in her vicinity ever since the pardons had been announced. The USAF crew (especially his Rhodey-bear) had been planning out the training schedules for the duration of the Rogues' probationary periods. Tony was fairly certain that they had a betting pool going on which Rogue would violate the terms first, but he was not allowed to join, which was _rude_ but understandable.

No one wanted to play cards with him either.

"Can you tell me the plan that those three are cooking up at least?"

"Of course, Dr. Stark," Karen answered saccharinely. The dread returned to drag a finger down Tony's spine. "They're planning to drag those monsters down a legal back alley and beat them soundly with the broad side of the law."

"Why is that so scary? I don't think that should be so scary. Karen, you scare me."

"Good," she said before tweaking his nose and leaving. Tony sighed a bit wistfully at her back. Nelson and Murdock were very lucky men, even if they were scheming with his ex.


	2. Missed Reactions

**Warning:** This work may be offensive to some readers. Feel free to back out if need be.

**Author's Note:** Uh, so…this is actually a second chapter rather a different oneshot. Also, you will notice a distinct lack of a certain Widow. There is a reason for this.

**Submitting Info:**  
**Stacked with:** Hogwarts (Term 12); MC4A (WiB; TY; DP; War; Share; T3; FR; O3; FPC; BAON; ToS; StL; SIN; NC; SoC; FF; NCR; RC; Star; Fence; ER; RoB; MLG; Rum; Cluster; MT; WF)  
**Individual Challenges:** Metahuman MC (x2); SHIELD MC (x2); Hydra MC; Seasoning Fix; Seeds; The Third Phase; New Fandom Smell (Y); Team Logic; Marvelous Cinema; Serial Marvel; Ethnic & Present (x2); Rian-Russo Inversion; Short Jog; Yellow Ribbon; Yellow Ribbon Redux; The Real MC; Two Cakes!; Greatest Gift  
**House:** Hufflepuff  
**Assignment No.:** Term 12 – Assignment 3  
**Subject (Task No.):** n/a  
**Other Hogwarts Challenges:** Insane Prompt Challenge [17] (Alone); 365 [10] (Aloof)  
**Other MC4A Challenges: **Wi Bingo [2B] (Joy)**  
Representation(s):** Team as Family; bisexual Scott Lang; Misty Knight (with Bionic Arm); a bunch of onesided relationships (Wanda/Vision; Clint/Laura; Scott/Hope)  
**Bonus Challenges: **Misshapen Pods; Second Verse (Ladylike; Not a Lamp; Persistence Still; White Dress; Found Family; Nontraditional; Middle Name; Unwanted Advice; Lovely Coconuts; Grease Monkey; Muck & Slime; Rock of Ages; Uncivil Obedience; Under the Bridge; Where Angels Fear; Civil Disobedience); Chorus (Odd Feathers; Wabi Sabi; Peddling Pots; Tomorrow's Shade; A Long Dog; Eternal Boredom; Larger than Life; Unicorn; Wind Beneath; In the Trench; Surprise!; Call Me Dantes; Sitting Hummingbird; Some Beach; Getting On; Hot Stuff)  
**Tertiary Bonus Challenges:** T3 (Thimble); FR (Liberation); O3 (Orator; Ox); DP (Yearn); TY (Kulonbozo)  
**Word Count: **1645

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**Missed Receptions**  
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Steve breathed deeply as he stepped off the plane. Nothing had ever smelled as good as distinctive stink of New York in the middle of a heat wave. The air in Wakanda had been much cleaner as well as fragrant with the copious vegetation that surrounded the capital city. It was a beautiful country, and T'Challa had every right to be proud of it. But no amount of beauty would ever make up for it not being home.

No amount of beauty would make up for how they had been restricted from leaving the country either. T'Challa had not even allowed Steve and his team to help with things inside the borders, not even when the young king had nearly been usurped. They hadn't even been informed of that situation until well after it was over. The inactivity outside of whatever training regimes they chose to create had been the second most frustrating part of the last year, right after being forced to listen to all the awful things that everyone had said about them without being able to defend themselves.

Not to mention how Tony had just started adding people to the team like he had the right!

"Man, I feel like I should kiss the ground," Sam said as soon as he hit the tarmac besides Steve. He turned his face to the sun and took a dramatic breath of his own. "I can't believe it took so long to finally get back here."

"I can't wait to see my family," Clint said. "Nate's gonna have grown so much!"

"Casey, too," Scott agreed. "I really hope that Maggie lets me see her."

"Of course, she will," Steve assured him. He patted the other man's shoulder. "Just you wait."

"Do you think Vision will be meeting us?" Wanda asked, clearly eager to see her boyfriend. And who could blame her? Just as Tony had never responded to Steve's apology letter (even when it became clear that he had needed help), Vision had not responded to the letter that Clint had smuggled out for Wanda at the same time. Steve only hoped that Tony wasn't so spiteful that he had gotten in the way of young love. "Do you think they'll let him?"

"I apologize for my tardiness," a black woman announced as she approached them at a fast clip. Despite her sharply pressed business suit, she had combat boots on her feet and had left her hair in a mess of thick curls around her head. More notable for Steve, she also wasn't carrying anything like Maria would have been. In fact, she had gloves on both hands. The small differences made Steve tense. This felt wrong. "There were other matters that required my attention. If you will follow me, we can go over the final details of your return."

"No disrespect, ma'am, but who are you?" Steve asked even as they all followed her towards the terminal. The woman gave them an aloof looking smile over her shoulder. Maria Hill at her most officious gave a better impression of a smile. Fury being faced with Tony would have seemed more genuinely happy.

"My name is Misty Knight," she introduced brusquely, not even slowing her pace. "I have been assigned by SWORD to play welcome wagon for you. Mostly because it was agreed that someone from the New York team should do it, and most of us are busy with preparations for tonight's shindig." She opened a door to a parking lot and stepped aside let them pass. "You're required to attend that, of course, as a show of good faith and all that. Appropriate attire has already been arranged, as has transportation to and from the event. You are expected to both arrive and leave as a group. If you will get into the vehicle, we can be on our way."

"What? No driver?" Clint asked as he slid into the backseat of the black SUV that Misty had indicated.

"Amazingly enough," she said in a dry tone that reminded Steve painfully of Natasha as she took the driver's spot, "I am entirely capable of driving. It's not even that far to the Tower."

The SUV was one of those strange models that weren't quite long enough to be a van. Steve never could get his mind around why it was considered different, but at least it had an extra backseat that allowed all of them plus their escort to ride in the same vehicle. He waited until Scott and Sam had taken the far back and Wanda had settled into the spot next to Clint before choosing the front passenger seat.

Misty barely waited for them indicate that they were ready before starting the engine and putting the vehicle in motion. Without any wasted motions or glances away from the road, she continued speaking. She was a better driver than Clint or Sam, but Steve felt like he would have been a bit more comfortable if someone he knew was driving or even a SHIELD agent that he didn't know. It wasn't anything against her personally. It was just that Steve didn't know her as well as he knew Clint or Sam.

"Mr. Lang, the West Coast team has approved your transfer," Misty explained, unaware of Steve's thoughts. "You will be staying in their facility outside of LA. I have been told to inform you that Ms. van Dyne are handling arrangements getting Cassie to and from her visits. I'm afraid that I don't have any more details for you, but the majority of the West Coast team will be present at tonight's events."

"What about my kids?" Clint asked. He leaned around the seat to get a better look at Misty. "When do I get to see my kids?"

"I'm afraid that I don't have any information for you, Mr. Barton." Her tone was so carefully neutral that it made Steve's teeth ache. "I know that there are copies of the paperwork that all of you signed waiting for you in your suite. I know that each packet will include any information specific to your individual case such as team transfers, any stipends allotted, and whatever eligibility requirements that the Council has determined necessary for you. I imagine that anything concerning children will also be there."

"Why do you know his and not mine?" Clint demanded. He was gripping the back of Misty's seat hard enough that Steve just knew there were going to be indentions from his fingers. Misty took a deep and slow breath, just like how Bruce would when he was struggling a bit with the Hulk (usually because Tony was being extra annoying). Steve missed the doctor suddenly, just as much as he missed Natasha and even Tony. At least two of those he was likely to see in just a few short hours.

"Ms. van Dyne wanted Mr. Lang to know as soon as possible," Misty said evenly. "She made sure to tell me when she found out that I had been assigned to pick you up. Mr. Lang also needed to know about his transfer since he will be returning with the West Coast team after the gala." She gave a wry smile into the review mirror as she turned into the familiar parking garage for the Tower. "I don't even you, even if the beaches are better out there. The West Coast team has a lot of rookies. Though to be fair, they also house the refugees from Attilan, so it's not like the rookies are by themselves."

"Refugees?" Steve asked just as Misty parks the SUV. "What refugees?"

"You've been away, Mr. Rogers," she explained as she got out. "The world did not stop because you decided you didn't like the rules you were being asked to follow."

They had to quickly follow her as she was already headed towards the bank of elevators. Steve would have argued what she had said—after all, it had not been like that—but he had to make sure that his entire team was able to keep up with the fast clip that Misty was setting for them. Steve was definitely going to let Tony know how his employees had treated them when he saw the man. Then again, maybe this was Tony being petty and Misty was just doing her job. She wasn't being overly rude even, just less than welcoming. It made Steve feel like she felt that there were better uses of her time than helping a team of returning heroes adjust.

Misty punched a code into keypad next to the elevator marked with red doors. Steve knew that particular elevator was the only one with access to the residential floors of the building. He just didn't remember there being a keypad before, let alone a code to access it. There was even a security visor that prevent him from seeing what code she had used, and Misty didn't tell them what the code was. It might have been an oversight. Steve was sure that she was probably a bit flustered at having to do all of this while putting on the show that Tony must have required.

Steve cleared his throat to call her attention to the lapse subtly, but the sound was covered by the ding announcing the elevator's arrival. Then Misty was speaking again.

"Your assigned floor is eight-four. Your attire for tonight is waiting for you in the common area. Those packets I mentioned are also there. Room assignments are up to you, but there's enough for all of you to have your pick." She gestured for them to enter the elevator while staying outside of it. "Someone will be by to collect you at a quarter till seven for the gala. Please be ready."

"What about—"

The doors closed before Steve could more of his question out.


	3. Suite Confusion

**Legal Disclaimer:** I own my stuff, but not the original source material. That belongs to whoever. Also, the opinions and interpretations I use here may not reflect the same in said whoever that owns the source material. Look, I'm just a poor college librarian. Suing me isn't going to get you anything but tears.

**Warning:** This work may be offensive to some readers. Also, the delusional thinking is very strong here and it comes out as plans to bully/abuse a character who is not present. Feel free to back out if need be.

**Author's Note:** Just as a reminder, because I haven't updated this fic in a while, this entire fic is very much not on the side of Team Treason (AKA Team Cap). If you are a fan of any of them, particularly in the MCU, then this fic (probably not any of my fics, actually) is not for you. Do not bother wasting both of our times by reviewing.

**Submitting Info:**  
**Stacked with:** Hogwarts (Term 12); MC4A  
**Individual Challenges:** Metahuman MC (x2); SHIELD MC (x2); Hydra MC; Criminal MC (x5); Military MC (x2); Rian-Russo Inversion; Laws; Shipwreck; Zed Era; The Real MC; Two Cakes; Green Ribbon; Greatest Gift; Short Jog; New Fandom Smell; Marvelous Cinema  
**House:** Slytherin  
**Assignment No.:** Term 12 – Assignment 9  
**Subject (Task No.):** n/a  
**Other Hogwarts Challenges:** Insane Prompt Challenge [23](Boring); 365 [304](Table); Geek Pride [Game of Thrones] (A Betrayal)  
**Other MC4A Challenges: **Sp Bingo [4A](Ribbon/Cord); Tr Bingo [3D](Card-Carrying Villain); Hunt [Sp Settings](New York City [Any Borough]); Ship [Sp Medium 1](Shipper on Deck); Chim [Doug] (Family/Friendship; "Human" by Rag'n'Bone Man)**  
Representation(s):** Rogues as Family; One-Sided Wanda Maximoff/Vision; Barton Divorce; Salty Post-Civil War; BC Use  
**Primary & Secondary Bonus Challenges: **Middle Name; Mother Hen; Unwanted Advice; Tomorrow's Shade; Second Verse (Ladylike; Not a Lamp; Persistence Still; Found Family; Nontraditional); Chorus (Odd Feathers; Fizzy Lemonade; Machismo; Peddling Pots)  
**Tertiary & Generic Bonus Challenges:** SN (Rail)  
**Word Count:** 1362

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**Suite Confusion**  
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Steve's good mood only continued to sour after reaching their assigned floor. When Misty had mentioned that they were sharing, he had believed that she had just made an honest mistake. Before the Avengers had moved to the Compound, they had all had their own floor. In fact, none of the residential floors had been set up like this.

There were five bedrooms, all with attached bathrooms. There was a common room with a television and comfortable furniture. It opened into a combination kitchen and dining room. There were some pantry staples in the cupboards along with a generic collection of dishes and cutlery, but the fridge only had a small selection of drinks. There were none of their favorites. None of their personal belongings had been moved from the Compound to here.

As Misty had said, there was a rack of garment bags in the common room. Each garment bag had been labeled so that there was no mistaking which belonged to who. The stack of manila envelopes on the coffee table was likewise marked. Clint wasted no time opening his packet, no doubt desperate for news about when he would be reunited with his family.

Almost immediately, Clint started cursing a blue streak.

"Stark convinced Laura to divorce me!"

"What?" Steve asked, confused. When Steve had met the woman during the Ultron disaster, Laura had seemed a sensible woman who was devoted to the family she had made with Clint. He couldn't imagine anyone convincing her to just toss that away, no matter how charming Tony could be when he put in the effort to be. "How did he manage that?"

"I don't know," Clint admitted, "but Tony is already gonna have a lot of groveling to do, so he had better not take too long to fix this mess. There's even paperwork in here saying that all visits with my kids need to be supervised by another Avenger, like I'm some kind of violent criminal!"

"Don't worry," Steve assured him. "All of us are willing to go with you until we get this fixed. We will fix this."

"Do you think that he got to Vision?" Wanda fretted. "What if that's the reason that he didn't respond?"

"We'll fix that, too, if we need to." Steve looked over them, taking in the lines of stress on all of their faces. He straightened his back and tried to project confidence when his own was beginning to waver. "We did the right thing when we opposed the Accords. People recognized that, and now we're back. Yes, things aren't exactly as we pictured them and they seem bleak right now, but we can fix everything. We have a chance to talk sense into Laura and Vision and whoever else we need to."

"Steve's right," Sam said, crossing his arms. "We'll see Vision, at least, at the party tonight. I'm sure once he sees Wanda again, he'll remember how he felt about her. Stark isn't going to come between true love. Everyone may have bought his lies, but that was when we were stuck in Wakanda on radio silence. All of that can change now that we're back."

"We're Avengers," Steve continued. "No one can take that from us. The people recognize that they need us. That is why they gave us those pardons."

"Except we're not," Scott interrupted. He had his packet open and had flipped through it a couple pages. "We're probationary members. Or at least I am. There's a list of things that I need to do before I can apply for full membership."

Clint shuffled his papers. Finding his own list, he turned it towards the others. Steve and Sam exchanged looks. Wanda's eyes flashed crimson with her anger.

"Stark's trying to say that we're not Avengers?" she hissed. "After everything he's already done, how dare he?"

"No one can say that we're not Avengers," Steve said. "We'll talk to Tony at the gala and explain that we're not going to tolerate his tantrum anymore. Simple as that."

A high pitched beep sounded throughout the common room. Everyone visibly winced at it, but Steve had to lock his knees in order to keep them from going out from under him. Enhanced senses were a pain sometimes. Before any of them could even voice a question about the sound, a digital clock appeared on the television. Under it was a red countdown timer that showed less than thirty minutes.

"Seriously?" Clint asked. "Stark's never on time to fucking anything, but he's really gonna make us stick to that schedule that the woman gave us? Friday, tell Stark to shove his ego up his ass!"

"Language," Steve scolded. Clint glared at him but didn't reply. Not that he got a chance, because a delicate voice came over the intercom before he could.

"Friday is not available currently," the voice said. Unlike Friday's distinctive lilt, this new voice had a strange amalgamation of accents. It reminded Steve of the few people he knew that had grown up speaking multiple languages before they had learned English. There was even the tiniest trace that reminded him of Erskine's accent. "As a courtesy, I will not be passing along your message. You now have twenty-five minutes until your escorts to the UN arrives."

"Stark made another AI?" Wanda asked. "Is it murderous, too?"

"My name is ANA," the voice said neutrally, "and by all known records, I am three months older than yourself, Miss Maximoff, as difficult as that is to imagine. Your attire for the gala is in the garment bags and are labeled. Please be ready on time."

With a huffy sigh, Wanda stomped over to the rack of garment bags. She jerked them apart one by one until she apparently found the one with her name. She pulled it out, turning the arms of the hanger on its spoke as she did so that it was laying against the other garment bags. Then she unzipped the bag to look at what Tony had chosen for her to wear. She made a pleased noise at the sight of the ruby dress.

"This is not as terrible as I feared," she announced. She looked at the shoes that had been set aside for her. They were fancy to Steve's eyes, with a couple of ribbons that would wrap around Wanda's legs a few times. He had seen Wanda wear shoes like them a few times in the year between her joining the Avengers and the whole situation with the Accords. "Those are a nightmare, however. What will Vision do if he sees me in this trash?"

"I don't think Vision is gonna be looking at your feet, Wanda," Clint said with a grin that made Steve uncomfortable. Wanda was just a kid. Clint shouldn't be leering at her like that. "He's got to be missing you by now. He's sure to take one look at you and want to sweep you off somewhere to be alone!"

"I suppose you're right," Wanda agreed reluctantly. "I had hoped to do a bit of dancing though. What's the point of going to Stark's boring party if I don't get at least one dance?"

"If we don't get ready," Steve said before Clint could say whatever inappropriate thing matched the expression he got, "then we will be late to the party, and what kind of example is it when the guests of honor are late?"

There was some half-hearted grumbling, but soon enough, each of them had their clothes and were heading to their rooms in order to change. Steve really hoped that this gala was a sign that Tony had mostly gotten over his tantrum and not yet another way to be the center of attention. After everything that had happened, it would be nice to finally put it all behind them. Maybe if Tony apologized sincerely enough, they could be a family again. Yeah, Tony had several new things that he had to make up for, in addition to everything he had already had, but Steve was certain that they could work past it all.

Or at least he had faith, and that was usually enough.

(^^)  
To Be Continued  
(^^)


End file.
